Started liking Yang Mi.
The drama depicts the strong FL that I like. It has proper betrayal, regret, sadness, and character growth.
you will get to see two versions of Fl which are worth in one Drama. One strong Fl side, then a naive Fl, and the coming back being strong FL.
Love VFX effects that make it look surreal. also, the sweet love between ML and FL is covered with misunderstanding and complicated emotions.
A must wach for yamg mi fans .
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This review may contain spoilers
Sensual, Lustful and Arousing Making out scenes from the Main Leads~
Okay! come on, calm down. Lol~ I know some people might be weird-ed out by my Drama Highlight but when I think of something that left the most impact on me watching this drama I got nothing except for Yang Mi & Mark Chao's kissing and Making out scenes. Hahaha~For someone who've watched tons of dramas with such heated scenes I must say that the way they deliver and execute them is by far the most utterly jaw-dropping and drooling among all. They exude the passion, devotion and very intense emotion that can make you feel differently. Hahaha~
P.S. I finished watching this drama 1 week before I complete the entire series. Hahaha~ So, apparently I was so busy with work that I can't watch the whole show in one go, so I ended up spoiling myself by fast forwarding, Jumping and Leaping through its scenes episode per episode on Youtube. So I watched this drama completely spoiled and aware of what's to come. The very first drama I felt impatient about. HIHI~
Anyways, let's move on and discuss some other things I love and some other stuff I felt like the production felt short of.
→ Likes...
×× Probably the way they kept Yang Mi's character look and feel proud and regal 80% of the time. The way her character was created is something that I love. Whenever Sujin tries to harm her and way she retaliate always satisfies the real-b*tch out of me. Like "Yes Girl feed her with humiliation" Hahaha~
×× Next is the side characters/couples. This drama just made sure that it is giving justice to almost anyone they start a story with. Most specially with how Zi Lan and Yan Zhi's story ended. It is really heartbreaking and saddening but that only shows how much the producer tries his/her best to end the other relationships they built to make sure that nothing is left hanging even after the drama ends.
×× Oh God, Here we are!! Zhe Yan && Bai Zhen's subtle Bromance, Kyahh! Aside from the Main Couple their cute-sweet-tiny moments gave me so much joy whenever they appear on screen. They're like an old couple who silently takes good care and pamper each other most of the time. I hoped to get more from them. T.T
→ Dislikes...
×× This is tough but I gotta say that the first half of the drama kinda bored me out. I felt like most of the early stuff could've been shortened and it would be more perfect. 58 Episodes is really a lot but it's all worth it. However I felt like they could've used some of the unnecessary fillers to give us Bai Qian && Ye Hua's story enjoying their time with A-Li. They really felt short in showcasing that cute and wonderful child.
×× Next is some questionable plot materials that felt odd & ridiculous. First is Ye Hua's custom-made prosthetic arm that shouldn't be useful but right after his Heavenly Trial in Mortal Realm he was able to use it instantly and even utilized it in fighting the Former Ghost Lord. Like, common! Second is how the Soul-gathering-lamp was broken after Bai Qian threw it. I mean, I know she's a High God but that thing is supposedly an old artifact that should've been sturdy and magical... So how? Third is the power scaling... Being on that position of High God means that you got prestige and insane power, right? yet most of Bai Qian's fighting scenes is simply lacking and unimpressive. I don't wanna pick on this but it just stood out like a sore-thumb and it truly bothered me.
×× Finally! The fight scenes in general. It was so underwhelming and unimpressive to the point where I'm quetioning how come how are they defeating their opponents with such slow and pathetic movements. This is one of the areas where this drama left a huge hole for me and made me quite disappointed.
Story - 9.5, I went through so much contemplation and consideration before giving this rating cause the drama is certainly not perfect but I felt like most of the things I find underwhelming about it doesn't necessarily affected the story in a bad way and I felt like although some of them do affects my mood while watching the drama I just can't discredit it for how well-made the main story is. It was still a brilliant plot that gave us so much character development and story progression.
Acting/Cast - 10, Definitely! I must say that they got one of the FINEST among the C-dramas I've watched so far. The artists in this drama are magnificent in their role and I never felt bothered by anyone's acting even one bit. Even the side and extra's felt so damn good. The set of artists casted in this production is really remarkable.
Music - 9.5, The Music started as SO-SO during the first half of the drama but eventually redeemed itself towards the latter half. Although I find 50% of this dramas BGMs as flat and unimpactful they were still decent and never affected my mood in a bad way.
Rewatch Value - 9.5, I would Probably skip some of the scenes on episode 10-20 but I'll still surely watch it nonetheless. This drama gave me so much emotion and feels watching it. A drama that gets better and better as you watch it.
Overall - 9.5, Considering the things I felt underwhelmed about... I feel like this is the perfect score I can give to this production as a whole. This drama is truly impressive specially with its story progression and its highlight scenes but I can never overlook some of its flaws that made me a little bored and dissatisfied. Overall A Great drama that depicted Passionate True Love even after several misfortunes and challenges.
IF you find my review helpful please let me know.
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MUSIC: The music is simply gorgeous. So beautiful in fact that I actually bought the soundtrack for it. I really thought the OST was lovely, and I listen to the song ALL the time when I'm working or studying. Unlike some dramas, this song was actually written for the drama and really fits with the lyrics. Really though, all the music was great - grandiose when it needed to be grandiose, bright and fluffy appropriately, etc. VERY Well done!
SPECIAL EFFECTS: Once again, I know several reviewers and commentors said the special effects for the drama were not good. Maybe I'm just easy to please, but I thought they were great. I have a passion for Fantasy dramas, and I've watched as many as I possibly can. Perhaps there are spots here and there where you can spot the CGI or effects, but on the whole -- this drama nailed it. I did of course get so caught up in the plot that I may have just been oblivious, but I've rewatched several of my favorite parts of the drama about 13 times so far and I still think it was solid effects. Beautiful colors, gorgeous costumes, great make-up, stunning architecture -- that peach tree orchard begs me to go visit. I'm definitely getting my future husband to make me an orchard.
CHARACTERS / ACTING: The acting was simply brilliant! I can't really name a single character that I thought didn't hold up their part. Mark Chou as Ye Hua was just fabulous -- you really felt the emotionless aspect at the beginning as well as his confusion at the lengths people would go to for this "love thing." But then later, when he is crying over Su Su, it's just heartbreaking. His little shocks when he first meets her and then his bravery and sacrifices later in her name - you just wanted to give him a huge hug and tell him everything would be okay. Seriously, the dude ripped out your heart. And the adorable little boy - he's just SO CUTE! OMG he is the sweetest little kid ever. I love his "little dumpling" title - fits him to a tee. And his interactions with both Ye Hua and Su Su were so precious. I could keep going - I won't because this would be too long - but the acting was definitely fab.
LENGTH: This drama is long, and I would definitely divide it into three parts plot wise. Unlike some dramas though, I don't think there was really an episode you could skip and still move forward. Part of the reason for its length is that it had a TON of plot lines running at the same time. You had about 4-5 different couples, plus the whole "saving the world" theme, the Mo Yuan plot, the Ghost world plot. . . . you get my point. It was just a whole lot going on in one story. But I've got to say, I watched it all. Usually I'm pretty quick to skip over boring fighting or "plotting" parts that seem to take up so much of the Chinese drama time. But here, I just soaked it all in. And I actually enjoyed all of the plot lines.
PLOT: Just so good! It was complex, it was convoluted, it was chock full of emotions and action and movement. There were a million things interacting and impacting one another - the romance of once couple subtly igniting events that struck another which triggered reactions flowing on to a third. You felt the romances and tragedies alike. Even when you really hated Su Jin and the Ghost Prince, you could also feel their pain and heartache at the same time. Everyone had their reasons and passions - it was just a story of how you should respond to them.
One of my favorite parts of the drama was how much it taught me about A) Chinese culture and B) their understanding of Buddhism / how the ancient religion worked. You'd be surprised how much of it was part of their mythology and actual hierarchies. For example, I was fascinated by the use of "fate" and "self-will" in this story. Part of the question was how much you can fight against fate and how much your actions will impact your future if fate is already predetermined. I was also fascinated to see how they explained the who saints and gods thing. Like how the whole "earthly test" thing went and what it meant. I actually learned quite a bit :P
Also, it gives you a good glimpse into how China's culture is different from that of Korea or Japan. For example, although Bai Qian can be sweet and kind, she's far from submissive or willing to just take abuse. She doesn't lash out and yell at people like the Kdrama starts sometimes do, she doesn't just accept it like the Jdrama girls do. She gets mad and then gets even. Smart girl - she waits and plots and then just does it. And in China, that doesn't make her a bad person. She's loyal, honest, and kind to those who deserve it. If she's a bit brutal to the bad guys, well they are bad guys after all. I liked her :)
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So if you are like me that wasn't impressed from the first few episodes I suggest you start around episode 23 and from there I believe you'll get hooked and would want to watch it all over again and again.
If you like cultivations, fantasy, deities and a fan of chinese novels then this is a perfect drama for you.
If you are not much into fantasy or isn't aware of cultivations from chinese novels then I guess this drama isn't for you or maybe you could give it a try if it's to your liking especially if you are into good romance.
Lastly, I have to mention this... The female actress portraying the main character was undeniably amazing! Her acting skills are superb! Now I'm really a big fan of hers.
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This review may contain spoilers
WOW! okay, where do i start!?First of all , dont be put off by the total that is 58 episodes, there's no messing around in this drama and 58 episodes is just the right amount! there's no boring or draggy parts in this drama!
If you've started this drama and its getting confusing, don't be worried, i'd advise to read a drama recap/intro to the story if you're confused, i know theres a lot of characters to keep track of but after the initial first few episodes the story will come together and it makes a lot more sense...THEN YOU GET HOOKED.
The story is very interesting from beginning to end and the main couple's story was unpredictable! I literally couldn't predict what was possibly going to happen next and had no idea what the ending would be like... i was prepared for any kind of ending and it was magical! The components of the story were nothing i'd seen before, i thought that the hype was just because of the cast but the story really is as good as they say! and there's not another drama like it!
The only reason why the story got 9.5 with me is because I have unanswered questions, which i have posted in the discussions section. THERE ARE SPOILERS IN THERE. so dont go looking and ruining it for yourself if you havent seen the whole thing!
I only really knew of Yang Mi out of all the cast and even then I hadnt actually seen any of her works so the cast was completely new to me. I loved each and everyone of their acting and their representations of each of the characters, they were very believable to the point where I was wondering if 2 of the same people actually existed?
Although, the only thing i'm really gutted about, which i know cannot be helped, is the fact that mainland china dubs the voices of their original actors with other mandarin voice actors so you dont get to hear their real voices. I understand why it is done but i would much prefer to listen to their actual voices!
The music is spot on! I've not skipped one opening or ending whilst watching the drama for the first time, that's how beautiful the songs are!
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This review may contain spoilers
Not a love story
This contains some of my thoughts as I was watching and not a full review. I apologize if anyone thinks or feels I am being hard on this story. Imo it deserves it. If I rate this series only based on the story it would be a zero but I have given it a better rating than zero.The casting, acting, production, sets, cinematography, music, etc are all excellent and very high television quality. Yang Mi is an amazing actress and among my favorites. The entire cast gave great performances.
***** SPOILERS *****
beginning now
SPOILERS STARTING
After the first 16 episode I only really care about Si Yin/Bai Qian(1 character) The story is not very interesting but not terrible either.
By the time I reached episode 21 I find it very difficult to accept many things in this story. There is still only 1 character that I care anything at all about which is Si Yin/Su Su/Bai Qian and she is being treated like trash. Ye Hua should have found a way to communicate important information to her especially about people she will encounter like Su Jin. This story is on my last nerve. Yes, it has some interesting or good moments but that is being heavily negated by flaws and irritations.
Events in episode 22 especially with Su Jin are close to making me drop this series.
Ye hua loves Su Su? Totally unbelievable. Ye Hua let and caused terrible things to happen to Su Su. He needed to be honest and tutoring her from the moment he decided to be with her. If not at that time still found a way to teach her in the palace personally or through another. OR just taken the thrown. OR in a way I have not considered. He is highly educated AND grew up in the palace. He loves her? Than why has he not done everything possible? Bullshit. How does this series hold the rating it does?
Bai Qian encountered Ye Hua but has no memory. If she had her memory he would have no chance. She didnt jump to her death and remove her own memory purposely because they had a good time. The child may be hers but that is all. Ye Hua failed Su Su horribly and caused her severe harm. No amount of remorse or anything he does will ever make up for that. He should have stopped pursuing her especially with her having no memory. He is placing her in harms way again. Is what he had or has now love? Definitely no. It had some of the appearance of love early on but nothing real. He is actually the villain of Bai Qian's life. This should not be a series with a happy ending for their relationship regardless of his feelings or how the child makes her react. Also... Su Jin is still in an influential position at this point in the series.
Ep 33 How is Su Jin still not sealed somewhere or dead? How can the emperor not see through her deception? At least Ye Hua shows intelligence briefly when he sees she is lying. Still he does nothing about it except talk.
Ep34 Bai Qian is in position to be seriously harmed again although doesnt happen this episode. Both Su Jin and Xuan Nu are taking action against her.
I completed ep 34. I am suspending my watch & seriously considering dropping. Imo, the story is revolting and has little to do with love. Bai Qian with her reputation of extreme kindness, her protection of Mo Yuan's body, and actions of her family are among the only things that show any signs of love. Eternal love? Yeah sure... It barely includes love. Ye Hua may have "feelings" but not love. Also, Bai Qian seems to have become a somewhat weak character after she returned. She went through a life trial and came back ascended but a little naive and weak? Not accepting it.
The thing I feel most about the story in this series through episode 34 is disgust and irritation. So, it has been presented coherently enough to successfully provoke an emotional response but in a very negative way. The plot has holes, the story is annoying, & the main male lead character is actually one of the main villains up to this point. What else is there to say? The world itself was interesting but not the story and characters.
I didnt write this to antagonize anyone that thinks this is a good series. I apologize again. I just needed to give my perspective on this somewhere.
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It was all right..
I think overall I liked Pillow Book a little better. The constant lying, keeping secrets, not communicating and dragging out the drama over practically the whole show got to me the most with this one. And unlike Pillow Book, we didn’t get a whopping 20 minute scene where they tell each other everything during cuddles. There was a LOT more angst in this one than in Pillow Book and it felt like we ultimately got less payoff / rewards for the sadness that we (and the characters) endured. There was also a LOT of annoying, possessive, scheming jealousy by a couple of the side characters who just could not take no for an answer.That being said, the acting in this one by the ML was phenomenal! That man could emote through his eyes like nothing I have seen. I LOVE the lusty and angsty kisses we got, that beautiful hair draping over his shoulders, that jawline… how lovely he looks when he cries… sigh. Some of the best scenes in the Cdramas I’ve watched were in this one and I have been watching a few of them on repeat. Give that man a reward 🔥 His character had depth, and despite his passionate love toward the FL, he made some devastating mistakes with heavy consequences. That stretch of the show, his redemption arc, was my favorite.
Outside of the complaints I listed in the beginning, this was a good show.
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Not the Love Story I Hoped For
Even though Eternal Love technically has a happy ending, it feels far too small and sudden compared to how many episodes I had to get through to finally reach it. Out of 58 episodes, only a handful actually show warmth or joy between the main leads — everything else is conflict, sacrifice, separation, misunderstanding, and pain. I wanted to watch a love story, but instead, I got a long chase where love is always out of reach.There are a few genuinely beautiful moments between the two main leads, and they are well acted. In fact, from an acting perspective, the drama is impressive — the actors deliver emotional depth, and the fantasy world is visually stunning. However, when it comes to romance, it feels like a constant pursuit rather than a relationship. The happy scenes are too brief, making the emotional investment feel unrewarded.
I also wish we had more everyday moments between the leads, or even scenes with them and their child — who, by the way, is one of the only bright, pleasant parts of the drama. Instead, everything is rushed and overshadowed by suffering.
So yes, the drama has a “happy ending,” but it doesn’t balance out the heaviness of the journey. I watched dozens of episodes for just a few minutes of closure. If you’re here for a satisfying romantic journey, be prepared for more tragedy and frustration than love. If you’re here for acting and aesthetics, it might impress you — but as a love story, it left me wishing for much more.
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stardard. this series is nothing special…
… and many elements have aged atrociously. Consider me someone who appreciates the fact that the ML is somewhat sex interested (compared to other cdrama) but did we have to take it all the way to no consent? Then there’s the obvious, all effects and even stuntwork aged like milk, to the point of silliness.The FL is such a poorly executed character, it reads as if her personality became as soft or hard as the writer needed instead of any natural development or growth from experience.
Seriously this drama is standard, the flood of 10/10s is odd but maybe at the time this came out it seemed a cut above the rest? I imagine that has to be it. Watching it in 2025, with a current lens, not worth it one bit.
I see a lot of praise for Yang Mi’s acting and that is utterly unwarranted. She is competent at best, ridiculous at worst: the innocent girl bits while pretending to be a male desciple in particular were a feast of cringe and mind boggling character choices. It was someone’s idea that she should be acting like a 10 year old girl while we are told shes passing as a male desciple with that behavior and mannerisms.
If you watch it and dont mind aspects i mentioned you might love it. Perhaps it’s worth a try for most.
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This review may contain spoilers
Wow... where do I begin?This is all you need to know about this drama. It is not an innovative drama nor does it take itself too seriously. It delivers exactly what you expect it to deliver...which is lots of beautiful people in beautiful costumes with a beautiful soundtrack to go with it. It is a fantasy so of course there is going to be lots of shitty CGI. This drama is also not short on overused cliches: Female lead loses her memory (check), Male lead is stoic and cold (check), Male and Female leads are so in love they do illogical things (check), Evil, scheming, jealous women who desire the male lead (s) (check) (CHECK) and there are more but it would be a spoiler... (CHECK). I also fast forwarded a lot of boring side arcs. This was how I managed to finish this entire thing in 3 days.
BUT! Here is the huge BUT in this review... BUT.... boy was it entertaining. The main story arc, which is the love between Bai Qian and YeHua, was so captivating that it made up for all of the sleep I lost. Watch this drama for Mark Chao as YeHua. He gave the performance of his life. When Yehua was in pain, I was in pain. When he was in love, I was rooting for him like a childish school girl. Yang Mi as Bai Qian wasn't as impressive but she had her memorable moments. I give her lots of props for portraying multiple characters. She managed to bring to life three different characters in Siyin, Su Su and Bai Qian while still retaining the element of continuity that made us all believe that they were still part of her original character Bai Qian. She also kicked ass as Bai Qian (which was refreshing). I only wished she recognized her feelings for Yehua earlier. Like COME ON...GIRL... return the passion please!
Huge Con: The story does not truly start until the second act which is probably why people would drop it early on. The main male character (Yehua) doesn't officially show up until episode 8 or 9 for crying out loud.
In summary, I loved this. It was a great ride and I will definitely rewatch (and skip all of the nonsense filler story arc again) just for my dose of Bai Qian and Yehua.
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But boy was I wrong! Thanks to numerous reviews of this drama from MyDramaList reviewers, I finally thought "Meh, why not try something different? After all there must be some good Chinese dramas out there and Eternal Love is in the popular list."
And thus my rollercoaster of emotions begins.. ????
This drama is one of those that makes your life a hangover of feels afterward. You keep thinking about it every few hours after a couple of days. And if you're single like me, it makes you question why are you still single ????
To give a good review without bias, I'd have to be honest and say that cinematography-wise, its not up to par with most Korean dramas yet. This drama uses cheap CGIs (as most fantasy Chinese dramas do), have some unrealistic character traits (such as extreme obsession), is dubbed which I do not particularly enjoy (I realised later after comparing to other Chinese dramas this is a quality dubbing), does not have the best set of OST (although some are pretty good), and some support casts do not have that 'genuine' feel of acting. But hey, do I care?
No.
If you can ignore the aforementioned and focus on the plot and chemistry of the characters instead (especially main leads ????), then all those miniscule details becomes insignificant compared to the grand tale of true love that this drama brings you (Eternal Love might sound like a typical cheesy drama title, but for this drama it suits it perfectly. And have anyone noticed how poetic 'Ten Miles of Peach Blossoms' sound? *swoon*).
This drama has risen up to my top 10 of best watched dramas ever for the particular reason that it made me feel so much love for the main leads and I would definitely rewatch if again, even though its the first ever Chinese drama I have watched. For all of you out there who tend to stick to certain countries for your drama watchlist, but is open minded and would like to give new things a try, then this drama is for you. For all of you who have loved Chinese fantasy dramas before but haven't watched this one yet, then what are you waiting for?! THIS ONE IS FOR YOU!
Ok, enough rambling. Imma gonna go watch me some Chinese dramas now...
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